12 of the most iconic T-shirt designs in the universe

Done? Okay. We’re willing to bet that at least one of these came to mind : “I <3 NY”, “Keep Calm And Carry On” or the infamous Rolling Stone mouth. The reasons why these have become so iconic are varied, but they have all found their space in the T-shirt wall of fame.

I Love New York

…is both a logo and the Big Apple’s slogan. Originally designed in 1977 to promote tourism, the logo is still going strong and is often used in advertising campaigns. The design became particularly popular after September 11, when many visitors and locals wore this T-shirt to show their support for those affected by the terrorist attacks.

Rolling Stones tongue

The famous T-shirt was used by the Rolling Stones in the 70s and symbolised Mick Jagger’s pout and tongue out gesture. This soon became an iconic garment in the rock world and is still worn today by many Stones fans.

Frankie Says Relax

This was the T-shirt to wear in 1984 after the BBC banned the band Frankie Goes to Hollywood’s song “Relax”, stating that it was too explicit to air. Unsurprisingly, everyone bought the single — and wore the T-shirt, too.

Choose Life by Wham

Designed by the famous Katharine Hamnett, it was the biggest T-shirt to wear, literally, as it was designed in the 80’s baggy style. Chosen to promote the Wham’s single “Wake Me Up Before You Go Go”, the T-shirt flew off the shelves after the video premiered.

The Smiley Face

The original Smiley was designed over 50 years ago by the late Harvey Ross Ball as a logo for an assurance company to encourage employees to smile more. In 1972 Franklin Loufrani registered the Smiley for commercial use and began selling Smiley T-shirt transfers — whether Forrest Gump was the inspiration for it or not, is a different story.

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I’m with stupid

This one might not take any design (or subtlety) awards, but it’s still a popular choice. The origin is not clear, but it sure as hell isn’t going anywhere any time soon.

Mickey Mouse

As a marketing tool, Mickey Mouse he has appeared on pretty much anything that can be printed on. The first T-shirt was born in the 40’s when the popularity of the character started to rise and till this day it is still loved by adults and children alike.

Stüssy

Originally designed by surfboard maker Shawn Stussy to complement his range of boards, it is still one of the coolest streetwear T-shirts around. Thirty five years ago he hadn’t planned on making money from it, but his design proved to be timeless.

Superman

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Hard Rock Café

Wearing one shows what an international traveller you are (unless you bought yours on eBay). The garment was originally designed for a local London football team which Hard Rock sponsored, the left-overs were given away to customers and the rest is history.

Harley Davidson logo

Ramones

A take on the American presidential emblem, this tee doesn’t have much to do with its punk roots today, as you can find versions on sale at shops like H&M and Next. Debates aside about selling out, we can all agree this is a great looking tee.

Bazinga

Three Wolf Moon

This T-shirt actually became famous thanks to a sarcastic Amazon review, with praise for fitting “my girthy frame”, but criticism for having “only 3 wolves (could probably use a few more on the ‘guns’)”. Has it come full circle yet and become uncool enough that wearing it can be cool again?

Jesus is my homeboy

Jurassic Park

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again — put a massive dinosaur in any film and I’m exponentially more likely to see it. Turns out, T-Rex looks just as cool on a T-shirt as she does on the silver screen.

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